After Sheffield United had raced into a clear two-goal advantage after only 18 minutes of action at Bramall Lane, Blades supporters had been envisaging a cricket score come the full-time whistle.
Unfortunately, while they did have the last laugh in relegating their bitter Championship rivals with a win, who are now the only EFL team in history to be relegated as early as February, the final scoreline was far from being as emphatic as it may have been, as a spirited Sheffield Wednesday comeback saw Chris Wilder‘s men settle for a 2-1 victory.
Patrick Bamford would come away from the fiercely contested affair with his head held high, though, as he kept up his redemptive career arc in South Yorkshire as a Leeds United outcast with the opening goal against the Owls.
The same, however, cannot be uttered for his former Elland Road teammate, Kalvin Phillips, as a rash second-half challenge saw the 30-year-old handed his marching orders, as a late United collapse nearly came to fruition.
Sheffield United’s biggest underperformers vs Wednesday
Wilder would have felt frustrated by his senior midfielder’s moment of hot-headedness, as he clashed with Svante Ingelsson, but he was far from being the only notable underperformer in the Steel City Derby for the home side.
He wasn’t the only individual to be sent off during what was a lively instalment of one of English football’s most heated rivalries, as young Owls defender Gabriel Otegbayo was handed a second yellow in the dying moments of the game.
Phillips wasn’t exactly sticking out as a top performer for the Blades, before the referee intervened, as the brand new number 27 failed to amass a single key pass against a depleted Wednesday side.
Moreover, he only won three of his six duels before heading down the tunnel on the 49th-minute mark, with Wilder now having to make do without the former England international.
Alongside Phillips, it could be argued that Michael Cooper had a ropey game between the sticks, as he made one meagre save before being beaten by a stinging second-half effort from Charlie McNeill.
All in all, the mood at Bramall Lane at the full-time whistle would have been one of temporary elation, which would have been then followed by a flatness as to how tight the game actually was.
Sheffield United star must be dropped after the derby
In the end, United would have just been pleased to pick up another Steel City Derby victory, as the Blades still possess an outside chance of making the playoffs.
Wilder and Co will have to up their performance levels to get the better of the table-topping Sky Blues on Tuesday night, with Callum O’Hare potentially axed for the showdown with his former side after putting in an unconvincing performance against Henrik Pedersen’s League One-bound opponents.
O’Hare’s performance in numbers
Minutes played
84
Goals scored
0
Assists
0
Touches
36
Shots
1
Accurate passes
17/20 (85%)
Key passes
2
Total duels won
3/11
On his day, O’Hare is a tricky playmaker who is hard to thwart, with the unpredictable number ten up to eight goals and five assists for the season in the second tier.
He struggled against the physical challenge of the Owls, however, with one effort clipping the post, the best he could muster up during a cagey contest. O’Hare also won just three of his ten ground duels during the 2-1 win, as Wednesday constantly clattered into him to negate his impact.
The likes of Gus Hamer and the aforementioned Bamford would thankfully get a lot more joy out of a regimented Owls defence, with the quiet Englishman having to settle for only 36 touches of the ball before being substituted off.
Even Cooper, who was largely untested throughout in goal, would manage more touches, coming in at 38, as the quiet 27-year-old now wonders whether he will be dropped or not when Frank Lampard’s men travel to Bramall Lane shortly.
Having failed to pick up a goal or assist across his last five Championship games, it could be time for Wilder to bench O’Hare for a fresher body in the number ten spot, with plenty of personnel switches perhaps on the horizon, away from just Phillips’ suspension.
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